Braving the Lost Galaxy
by Har-El
Summary: When Deviot sends Terra Venture to the Lost Galaxy, Leo, Kendrix, and the Galaxy Rangers, plus a new ally, must defeat a new enemy and find a way home.


Disclaimers: I do not own Power Rangers: Lost Galaxy, or any characters affiliated it or any of the other PR sub-series. They are the joint property of Saban Entertainment, Fox Kids, Toei, Bandai, and who knows what else. 

Note from the author/Timeline: About two months after "Cosmic gladiator". I there's a major surprise guest in this 'fic. This surprise guest is the final key player in these last two parts of the series. Who is it? Well, I won't tell here, but you won't have to wait long to find out. 

I'm not using the name Captain Mutiny in this story for the Lost Galaxy villain. I've always liked his Sentai name (I believe it was Zahab) better, so I'm going to be using it here. Also, I'll be going by the assumption that the Galaxy book's guardian is the same person who gave Leo the keys on the show (and Mike in this reality). I thought that the resemblance was too uncanny for it not to be. 

Two more things before the story starts. First off, you'll notice a little later that all of the Rangers have Astro/Capsular Cycles. As for when Karone (and Kendrix before her) and Maya have the former, check the (now slightly altered) "We wonder why a little". 

As for when them, Damon, and Kai got the latter... well, I didn't put it in until now, but they had them the whole time and never took the chance to use them, until now. Sorry about any mix up there. 

This will be divided up into four chapters. The first will spotlight "Enter the Lost Galaxy", the second will spotlight "Beware the Mutiny", the third will skip "Grunchor on the loose" (though it will be mentioned) and completely take the place of "Until sunset", and the fourth fifth will skip both Hexuba episodes, as well as "Raise the Titanisaur" (again, all three episodes will be mentioned) and will spotlight "Escape the Lost Galaxy". 

On a final note, this will be a bit more like "We wonder why a little", as it focuses on the three episodes that the Galaxy Rangers enter and escape the Lost Galaxy and when they meet Captain Mutiny (or Captain Zahab as he's known here and in Gingaman). 

Acknowledgments: I dedicate this to Andrea Marbry, who has really helped me keep going, and for giving me the idea mentioned in "Reflections", about Leo seeking professional help (though her idea was actually for a couple of other things). 

Braving the Lost Galaxy 

By Lucas Harrell 

Chapter I 

"Into the Lost Galaxy." 

The shuttle slowly made it's way towards Terra Venture. It glided through the space station forest dome and settled down on the very edge of the city. There, it stopped, and seemed to wait. 

*** 

"Ay yi yi, I have to tell the Rangers," Alpha said, "There's no telling where that came from, or if it's a booby trap Trekeena sent." He walked over to the communications console and hit the all call button. 

*** 

Leo, Kendrix, Mike, Maya, Damon, Karone, and Kai were all in the Comet Cafe, enjoying what seemed to be a day off. Trekeena had been keeping them on their toes the past several weeks, with little hit and run attacks. They were glad to finally see a break in the pattern and get together outside of Ranger business. 

Their break seemed to be over, however, when Mike's communicator went off. "I read you, Alpha," he said into it, "What's wrong?" 

"An unknown shuttle has landed in the forest dome, Mike," Alpha reported, "It looks human, but that wouldn't make sense. What would someone be doing all the way out here?" 

"We're on it, Alpha," Mike said. 

"I'll stay, get the check, and bring the food by later," Kendrix offered, "You guys go on." The others nodded and stood up. "Be careful." 

"We will, mother," Leo teased. 

Kendrix shot Leo a playfully dirty glance. He gave her a kiss on the cheek, before him and the others raced out of the Comet Cafe. She signaled for the waiter, who came right over. "Bring me the check and some boxes for the food, please," she told him. 

"As you wish, ma'am," Bulk replied, and hurried off. 

Bulk came back a few minutes later, and Kendrix paid the check. She put the food in separate boxes and carefully placed it into a bag. As she walked out of the Comet Cafe, she couldn't help but worry about Leo and the others. 'I hope you're all right, guys,' she thought, "Especially you, Leo." 

*** 

Leo and the Galaxy Rangers didn't waste any time getting to the shuttle. "This shuttle is Kerovian in design," Karone pointed out, "But that makes even less sense, since it's so far away from any of our outposts." 

Suddenly, the door of the shuttle started opening with almost excruciating slowness. "Well, it looks like we're about to get our answers as to who was flying this thing and what they want here," Mike said. 

The door opened completely. It was dark inside. "Well, this certainly wasn't the welcoming committee I was expecting," someone inside teased gently. A head of silvery white hair poked out, revealing a handsome young man. 

"Zhane?" Karone asked, "What are you doing here?" 

"Well, you didn't expect me to sit back and wait for you, did you?" Zhane asked, as he made his way down the shuttle's ramp. He opened his arms, and Karone didn't waste any time in jumping into them. 

"It's good to see you," Karone said. 

"I'll bet," Leo teased from behind her. 

Blushing, Karone reluctantly pulled away from Zhane. "I guess most of you remember Zhane, the Silver Ranger," she said. The others nodded. "Zhane, this is Mike, Damon, Kai, and Maya, the other Galaxy Rangers." She pointed to each in turn. She then pointed to Leo. "And this is Leo, the Magna Defender." 

"Nice to meet all of you," Zhane said. 

"This isn't the best place to be talking," Mike pointed out, "Let's teleport to the Megaship, and we'll pick it up from there." The others nodded and got back onto their respective vehicles. 

"Come on, Zhane," Karone said, "I'll give you a lift." 

"I appreciate the offer, but I have my own wheels," Zhane replied. He glanced around. Seeing that nobody was around, he pulled out his morpher and flipped open the keypad. "Let's rocket!!!" With that, he punched in his morphing code. Seconds later, Zhane was the Silver Space Ranger for the first time in almost six years. 

"Galaxy Cycle, rev up!!!" he cried. At his command, a silver motorcycle came rolling down the ramp and stopped beside him. He hopped on, then turned to Leo. "Race ya to the Megaship?" 

"You're on," Leo replied. With that, the two zoomed off. 

Mike shook his head. "They're both a couple of kids that'll never grow up," he muttered. With that, he led his team back to the Megaship. 

*** 

"I have bad news, my queen," Deviot said, as he entered the bridge. 

"What is it now, Deviot?" Trekeena asked, impatient. 

"Sensors say that the Silver Space Ranger, Zhane, has arrived on Terra Venture," Deviot explained. 

Trekeena's head snapped up. "What?" she demanded, "Did the Galaxy Rangers call him and ask him to come and give them a hand?" 

"Unknown, but I wouldn't put it past them, Trekeena," Villamax interjected, "We seem to have come to a stalemate with them. They very well may have sent for him to help tip the scales in their favor." 

"I have a suggestion, my queen," Deviot said, "The Galaxy book is said to be able to give onto it's wielder power beyond all imagination. I can disguise myself as a human and steal it for you. With the power it can grant us, not even the legendary Silver Ranger will be able to help the Galaxy Rangers." 

"Go and steal that book," Trekeena said, "But beware. If you fail me this time, don't even bother to come back." 

"I understand, my queen," Deviot said. He turned and left the bridge. 'I won't be coming back anyway, "my queen",' he thought, 'I plan on sending those damned Rangers to the Lost Galaxy. Captain Zahab will most likely appreciate me for my evil skills than you or Villamax ever could.' With that, he teleported out of the Megastinger. 

*** 

The Guardian held up the twin swords and admired his handiwork. Ever since he gave his keys of power to Mike and Karone, he had been working day and night to build something even stronger and he was finally finished. 

Suddenly, a strange feeling passed over the Guardian. 'The timeline is in danger,' he thought, 'It has something to do with the Galaxy book, I can feel it. I'd better find the Galaxy Rangers and warn them of what lies ahead.' With that, he teleported away. 

*** 

Kendrix started out of the office, when she noticed a teleportation beam in the hall outside. She peeked out, to see the Guardian heading for the room where the Galaxy book was being held. 'Who is that?' she wondered, 'He looks kind of familiar.' 

Kendrix followed the Guardian to the Galaxy book room. He knocked opened the door with ease. "Hey!!!" she shouted, "You can't go in there. Only restricted personnel is allowed in there." 

The Guardian turned. "I am the Guardian of that which you call the Galaxy book, former Pink Galaxy Ranger," he said. 

"How did you..." Kendrix started to say. Suddenly, she realized who he was. She hadn't met him personally, but Mike and Karone had given her very good descriptions of him. "You're the one who gave Mike those keys a while back, aren't you?" 

The Guardian nodded. "Please, trust me," he implored, "The "Galaxy book" must come with me, or everyone here will be in danger." 

Suddenly, Deviot teleported into the hallway, and alarms went off. "You?!" he exclaimed in surprise at seeing Kendrix alive. "But I thought... Never mind. I'm taking the Galaxy book, if you don't mind." 

The Guardian moved around Kendrix to place himself between her and Deviot. "Go get your friends," he said, "I'll hold off this cretin as long as I can until they get here to help me." Kendrix nodded and left. 

"You didn't have to send her away," Deviot said, "Even I'm not low enough to hurt an obviously pregnant woman... well, as long as she doesn't get in my way." 

"Oh, somehow, I doubt that," the Guardian said. He pulled his newly forged swords from their twin scabbards on his back. "Now, as the humans here are often fond of saying, 'Let's rock'." 

Deviot went into a defensive stance. "By all means, let's," he sneered. The two charged at each other. 

*** 

The Galaxy Rangers, Leo, and Zhane gathered around the table. Kendrix was supposed to join them shortly with their food from the Comet Cafe, and the Silver Space Ranger promised to tell about what brought him here then. 

Suddenly, Kendrix burst into the room. She immediately had to stop, to catch her breath. "What's wrong?" Leo asked, as the team all rushed over to her. 

"Deviot's trying to steal the Galaxy book," Kendrix gasped, "The Guardian is trying to stop him, but I don't think he can hold him off for too long." The others looked puzzled at her mention of the Guardian. "Go, before it's too late." They nodded. 

"Let's do it, guys," Mike said. Karone, Damon, Maya, and Kai all nodded, and the five Galaxy Rangers held up their wrists that had their Transmorphers. 

"Go Galactic!!!" they said in unison, hitting their respectively colored button. Not five seconds afterwards, they were morphed and ready for battle. 

Leo went through his usual motions. "Defend the galaxy!!!" he cried. Seconds later, he was the Magna Defender. 

Zhane flipped open his digimorpher. "Let's rocket!!!" he shouted, and punched in the code to morph. He was soon morphed and ready for battle. The Galaxy Rangers, Leo, and Zhane all rushed to the vehicle bay and zoomed out. 

*** 

Deviot knocked the Guardian away. "While I must admit that you're a good opponent, you're too old and stiff to even stand a chance against me," the villain sneered. He turned to the room the Galaxy book was in. "Now, for my prize." With that, he rushed into the room and snatched the book. 

"Stop, you fool!!!" the Guardian shouted from the doorway, "You don't know what you're going to unleash!!!" 

"No, but I have a good idea," Deviot replied. He blasted the Guardian, who flew back against a wall. "And now, I must find a proper place to read the incantation." With that, he disappeared. 

*** 

Deviot landed in a field in Terra Venture's forest dome. "Ah, the perfect place to begin," he decided. He opened the Galaxy book and flipped through it's pages, until he came upon a certain page. "Keonta..." he began. Storm clouds started appearing over head. "Karova. Melanite, hakova! " 

*** 

The Galaxy Rangers zoomed through the skies in their Jet Jammers. They had decided to take the skies, while Leo and Zhane volunteered to search on the ground on their motorcycles. 

"Look," Maya shouted to the others, pointing to the storm clouds. 

"It must be Deviot's doing," Damon said, "He must all ready have the Galaxy book and is getting whatever he's got planned prepared. 

"Then, let's go," Mike commanded. They turned their Jet Jammers in that direction and took off. 

Not too far away, Zhane and Leo noticed the same strange storm. They also headed for the area it seemed to hover over. 

*** 

"A thousand nightmares will soon come true," Deviot chanted, "Space will twist then rip in two. Reality ends, time is tossed. As galaxies found, become galaxies lost." Suddenly, three blasts, two black ones and a silver one, hit the villain square in the chest. The Galaxy book fell to the ground. 

"Stop right there, Deviot!!!" Leo shouted. Deviot looked up to see the young Magna Defender and Zhane running up, their respective weapons pointed at him. Five energy bolts hit him in the back, and he turned to see the Galaxy Rangers flying in on their Jet Jammers. 

"Ah, good, you're all here," Deviot said, "But I'm afraid that you're all too late to stop me. Now, watch as your world is turned upside down." 

"What are you..." Kai didn't get his inquiry finished, as the Galaxy book suddenly seem to come to life. 

The Galaxy book floated into the air and energy poured out of it and flowed into Deviot. "Yes, I can feel the power coursing through me," he said. The power slowly changed him, making him even more monstrous. And all around them, Terra Venture began shaking uncontrollably. 

*** 

In the control room, Commander Stanton was knocked against the wall by the shaking. "What's going on?" he demanded. 

"Some kind of strange energy storm is brewing in the Forest Dome, sir," a woman said. 

"Look!!!" a man shouted, pointing to a monitor. It showed a huge vortex forming directly in front of Terra Venture. The huge space station was slowly making it's way into the vortex. 

"All stop," Commander Stanton said, but it didn't do any good, as Terra Venture was still heading for the vortex. 

"We have zero thrust control," the first woman said, "We'll entering the vortex in less than..." She glanced at a small monitor. "One minute." 

"Options?" Commander Stanton asked. 

"I don't think we have any, sir," another man said. 

"Then put out a warning for everybody to brace themselves," Commander Stanton commanded, "And strap themselves into something, if at all possible. This will probably be a rough ride, to say the least." The people in the control room nodded and set about going through with his commands. 

*** 

Kendrix had just gotten to the bridge and into a seat, when Terra Venture started shaking. "What's going on?" she asked Alpha. 

"A weird vortex of some sort has opened up in space in front of Terra Venture," Alpha replied, "We're going to enter it in less than a minute. And a strange energy storm has appeared over the Forest Dome. Oh, ay yi yi, this is terrible." 

Kendrix couldn't help but worry about the others, especially Leo. "Be careful guys," she murmured softly, as she strapped herself into the chair. She turned to Alpha. "Better strap yourself in, Alpha. There's no telling how rough the ride will be going through the vortex." 

Alpha nodded, got into a chair, and started strapping into it. "Oh, ay yi yi," he repeated. 

*** 

As his transformation came to an end, Deviot was almost unrecognizable. He shot energy bolts of his own out of his blasters. More powerful than ever, the blasts knocked the Rangers, who were been unsteady as it is by the earthquakes, off their feet. 

Leo was the first to his feet, and he drew out his sword. "I don't know what you're doing, Deviot, but we'll stop it," he threatened. 

"There isn't a force in the universe that can stop the Keonta spell," Deviot replied, "I hope you'll get to like the Lost Galaxy... because when this roller coaster ends, you'll never be able to leave." With that, the monstrous villain teleported away. 

Still shaky, Leo made his way over to the Galaxy book. He tried slashing it, but a force field kept him from even coming close to destroying it. A blast of magic knocked him back onto his butt. 

The ground shook for several more minutes, but the shaking eventually abated. After it did, the Rangers all stood up. "We'd better get to the Megaship, and see where Deviot sent us," Mike said. The others nodded. They all got onto their respective vehicles and took off. 

*** 

Commander Stanton stood up on his still shaky legs. "What happened?" he asked, "Where are we?" 

"We're not sure, sir," someone replied, "We can't even get a decent reading. Something is screwing our radar and sensors up." 

"Can we go back through the vortex?" Commander Stanton asked. 

"We don't even know if the vortex is still open," someone else answered, "We aren't getting any readings at all." 

"Then try your best to get the sensors back on track," Commander Stanton said, "We need a bearing." 

"Yes, sir," came the unanimous reply from everybody else on the bridge. 

As the control crew hurried about, Commander Stanton couldn't help but feel that something was just over the horizon. 'And, whatever it is,' he thought, 'It's something big, and bad.' 

*** 

The Galaxy Rangers, Leo, and Zhane were rushing through the tunnel from the Forest Dome to the main city, when they noticed that space was different. They came to a skidding stop got off and out of their vehicles. 

"Something tells me that we're not in Kansas anymore," Zhane joked weakly. After a moment of awed silence, they all got back on their vehicles and headed for the Megaship again. 

Chapter II 

"Zahab cometh."

On a not too far off planet, there sat a large castle. Inside were several golden skinned pirate-like creatures and a tall, massive, pirate-like creature. Suddenly, another pirate barged into the room. "What do ye want, Barbarax?" the massive creature asked, as it turned to the newcomer. 

"A huge new ship has come through the vortex, Captain Zahab," Barbarax reported, "Our scans show that it has several hundred occupants that we can capture and make slaves." 

"This is very good news," Captain Zahab said, "Swabbies!!!" 

"Ar," the golden skinned-creatures said, snapping to attention. 

"Ready the Titanisaur for launch," Captain Zahab commanded, "And prep a monster for battle at a moment's notice." 

"Ar," the Swabbies replied. They hurried off to follow through with his command. 

*** 

Kendrix was surprised when the Guardian walked onto the bridge. "Your friends were too late," he announced, "We're in the Lost Galaxy. You're all doomed unless.... Ack!!!" With that cry, he fell to a knee. 

Kendrix rushed to his aid. She couldn't keep him up, but she did help him get to the floor without dropping onto it really hard. "We should get you to the medical bay immediately," she said. 

The Guardian shook his head. "It's too late for me," he said, "But you must find a way out of Lost Galaxy, before it's too late." He the twin scabbards from their pocket dimension and handed them to her. 

"Give these to the silvery haired warrior," the Guardian continued, "I will impart the last of my power into them when I die, so that they will be able to allow him to aid you in these final battle with his full power." 

Kendrix tentatively took the twin swords from the Guardian. "The silver... You mean Zhane?" she asked. The Guardian nodded. "But nobody really knows that he's here, so how..." 

"It was written in my people's legends long ago," the Guardian said, "That 'The six destined ones will be forced into the galaxy long-lost, and that, only with their final ally, a brash young silvery haired warrior, will they be able to find their way home and defeat their enemy, once and for all'. If the silver haired one wasn't here, then all would be lost." 

"Well, he is here," Kendrix said, "And don't worry. Him, my husband, Leo, and the other Galaxy Rangers will defeat whatever evil is here, I swear." 

"I know they will," the Guardian replied, "Goodbye." With that, his eyes fluttered until they closed. Seconds later, his body transformed into energy, which then flowed into the twin swords. 

The energy was so bright that Kendrix had to close her eyes. When she opened them, she found her friends also uncovering their eyes, as the door of the bridge closed behind them. "What was that?" Leo asked, as he helped Kendrix to her feet. 

"It was the passing of the Guardian of the Galaxy book," Kendrix explained, "He was mortally wounded while trying to keep Deviot from sending us here." She turned to Zhane and held out the two swords. "He wanted you to have these." 

"Me?" Zhane asked, "Why me? And how did he know me?" 

"He didn't know you, exactly," Kendrix answered, "He just knew of you, from a legend passed down among his people." She held the swords out to Zhane again. "He used the last of his energy to unlock their power so that they can help you gain your full power. Please, don't let his dying effort be in vain." 

Zhane nodded and took the two swords. "I won't," he promised. He strapped them onto his back. "Now, to officially make them a part of my arsenal." He pulled out his morpher and flipped it open. "Let's rocket!!!" He punched in the morphing code and was the Silver Space Ranger seconds later. 

The second Zhane morphed, the Guardian's energy went from the swords into his body. "Oh man," he said, once the process was over with. 

"Are you all right?" Karone asked. 

"I'm more than all right," Zhane replied, "I feel awesome. Whatever that energy did to me, I feel more powerful than ever. I feel like I can take on anything." 

"Ay yi yi, I hope the feeling is literal, Zhane," Alpha said, "Because sensors are picking up an unidentified bogey coming towards Terra Venture." 

*** 

"Once we're aboard the ship, what's the game plan, Captain?" Barbarax asked. 

"It be simple, really," Captain Zahab answered, "We'll flood them with Swabbies and one of our monsters. When they're overwhelmed, ye'll (Note from the author: Ack!!! I never realized how hard it is to put in old English for pirate talk.) go in and take them all to the slave camps. Now, prepare the Swabbies for invasion, or I'll hang ye from the highest yard arm. Ar!!!" 

"As you command, Captain Zahab," Barbarax said, and left. 

*** 

"Any ideas on what that thing is?" Leo asked Alpha, as the Titanisaur appeared on the main view screen. 

"I'm not sure, but..." Alpha was cut off, as sirens went off. The screen cut from Titanisaur to splitting between scenes of two parts of the city. It showed two big groups Swabbies teleporting down, one of which was led by Barbarax, the other led by a monster. "Oh, ay yi yi." 

"What do we do now?" Karone asked. 

"We split up, and hope we have the fire power to take them out," Mike decided, "Bad thing is that we can't split up evenly, since there's only seven of us." 

"Hyuuga can even it up for us," Leo pointed out, "Though I'll have to wait to call him until I get to the battle field." 

Mike nodded. "Then it's you, Hyuuga, and Zhane taking on the group in the northern part of the city," he said, "The rest of us will take on the group in the southern part of the city. Let's do it." With that, they headed out of the bridge. 

"Leo," Kendrix called out. Leo stopped and turned. "Be careful." 

"I will," Leo replied, then headed for the hangar. 

*** 

As soon as Rocketron materialized in the city, the reaction was immediate. The people of Terra Venture took one look at him and the Swabbies and started running. "It won't do you any good to run," he called after them. Suddenly, lasers flashed through the air and struck him and his army of Swabbies. 

Rocketron was knocked back, but quickly recovered. "Who dares to try and foil Captain Zahab's plans?" he demanded. 

"We do," Mike said, as the Galaxy Rangers jumped out of their Jet Jammers and pulled out their Quasar Sabers. "We're the Galaxy Rangers, and we don't take kindly to villains threatening our space station." 

"Oh, is that so?" Rocketron challenged, "Well, come on, 'Galaxy Rangers', and see if you can stop us." 

"With pleasure," Mike said, "Let's do it, guys." At his command, him and the others rushed towards Barbarax and the Swabbies. 

*** 

Meanwhile, on the southern part of the city, Barbarax was also causing the citizens to panic. "That's right, run," he taunted, "Run for your lives. Not that it matters, anyway. They belong to Captain Zahab, now." 

Suddenly, two bolts, one black and one silver, hit Rocketron and he was forced to step back. "We don't think so, Barbarax," Leo and Hyuuga said simultaneously. The former had his ax, while the later had his sword in shotgun mode. 

"Yeah, we're taking you down," Zhane added. He put away his Super Silverizer and pulled out his twin swords. 

"I don't know who you all are, but I, Barbarax, am going to wish you hadn't crossed the mighty Captain Zahab," Barbarax said. He gestured to the Swabbies. "Swabbies, attack!!!" At his command, the army rushed the trio. 

*** 

It didn't take the Galaxy Rangers long to take out the Swabbies, but the battle had been tiring on them. "Don't get too cocky yet, 'Galaxy Rangers'," Rocketron taunted, "I, Rocketron, am more powerful than all of the Swabbies Captain Zahab has combined." 

"We'll see how just how powerful you are, Rocketron," Mike challenged, "Ready, guys?" Karone, Damon, Maya, and Kai all nodded. 

"Lights of Orion, activate!!!" the Galaxy Rangers cried in unison. Their Orion booster armor came online with their command. 

The Galaxy Rangers rushed at Rocketron. "Power up mode!!!" Mike shouted. With that, they merged into a fireball, which flew through the air. 

Rocketron bent forward and shot a missile from the launcher on its back. It hit the fireball, and it split back into the five Galaxy Rangers. "Is that the best you can do, Rangers?" he taunted, as he started towards the fallen warriors. 

*** 

Zhane cut into the army of Swabbies, using his twin swords to nearly cut them in half. It didn't take him long to take out his fair share of the golden-skinned pirate creatures. Hyuuga didn't either, as he used both sword mode and shotgun mode. 

Meanwhile, Leo took on Barbarax one on one. He met each blow from the evil villain's ax with one of his own, until he got a lucky shot in, and the end of the shaft met the villains face. 

Barbarax backed up. "You're pretty good, whoever you are," the villain admitted reluctantly, "But you must be new to that weapon, because you're not good enough." With that, he swung around and nearly chopped Leo's head off. 

Even with Leo's speed being enhanced by the ex, Barbarax's swing was so fast that he barely pulled back. There was a slight cut in the throat armor. 'Oh man, if that had been any deeper, I'd be dead meat,' he thought, as he pulled back from the villain. "Is that the best you've got?" he taunted, hoping to bluff his opponent. 

"I'm just getting warmed up, stranger," Barbarax replied. Without warning, he grew to zord height. 

"Uh oh," Zhane said, as him and Hyuuga finished off the Swabbies and joined Leo. "What do we do now?" 

Leo and Hyuuga wordlessly recombined. "You don't have a zord, so you'd better head back to the Megaship," Leo said. Zhane nodded. "Torozord, charge." With that, his might bull zord came barreling onto the battlefield. 

"Mega Defender, transform," Leo commanded. Torozord shot lasers from it's horns. They struck him and made him grow, turning his armor to red mode. The ax in his hand grew to better fit into his hands. 

"Defender Torozord!!!" Leo shouted. With that, he threw the ax into the air and combined with his zord. He then caught the ax in midair. He pointed to Barbarax then curled the finger back in a 'bring it on' gesture. 

Barbarax charged Leo. With surprising speed, the villain swiped his ax at the young warrior. It caught him flush in the chest and knocked him back. The villain then brought the ax over his head and was about to finish his opponent off, when several blasts came out of nowhere and hit him. 

Leo recovered and turned in the direction the blasts had come from. Zenith hovered in the air a few feet away. "Don't just stand there with your jaw open," Zhane said, "Let's finish this dork." 

Leo shook off the surprise of Zhane piloting Zenith and nodded. "Right," he murmured. He powered up the ax for the final blow. 

Leo swung the ax at Barbarax, but the villain teleported away at the last second. "We'll meet again," the villain promised, "Count on it." 

"Any time, loser," Zhane and Leo replied simultaneously. 

Laughing, Leo turned to Zhane. "How in the world are you piloting Zenith?" he asked, "I thought only the Galaxy Rangers could." 

"I thought so, too," Zhane admitted, "I guess the Guardian somehow knew that my old zord was destroyed years ago and gave me command of Zenith when his life energy poured into me from the twin swords." 

Leo was about to say something else, when a loud boom caught both his and Zhane's attention. "That must be the others," Zhane said, "Last I checked, they were fighting Rocketron with the Megazord. They were having trouble, so I sent the Centauris and Stratoforce Megazords to help out, as well." 

"Well, they may need some more help, so let's go," Leo decided. Zhane nodded, and the two headed for the other battle field. 

*** 

"This is it, guys," Mike said, as him and the other Galaxy Rangers slowly regained their feet. "Let's call the Astro cycles. Maybe the combined might of all our Capsular cycles can take him down." The others nodded. 

"Astro cycles," the Galaxy Rangers called out. Seconds later, their motorcycles teleported onto the scene. They hopped on and took off, heading for Rocketron, who suddenly started getting concerned. 

"V formation," Mike commanded. The other Rangers pulled their cycles into the formation. 

"Red/Pink/Green/Yellow/Blue Capsular cycle, power up!!!" the Galaxy Rangers shouted. With that, all five Astro cycles transformed into their more powerful forms. The canopies closed over the Rangers heads. 

The five Capsular Cycles became energized with each respective Galaxy Ranger's element power. They phased through Rocketron, transferring their energies into the monster, and overloaded it. 

But instead of blowing up, Rocketron grew. "I'll blow your whole ship sky high, and you with it," the monster growled. 

"I don't think so, Rocketron," Mike said, "Galactabeasts, arise!!!" 

At Mike's command, the five Galactabeasts came barreling onto the battle field. Each Galaxy Ranger jumped up on the head of their respective beast and thrust their transdaggers to the sky. Seconds later, the Galactabeasts were in their zord modes. 

"A big toy doesn't impress me," Rocketron challenged. 

"How about three big toys?" Zhane called out, as Zenith came onto the scene. The Stratoforce and Centauris zords came pouring out of the carrier zord and formed their respective Megazords. 

"Zhane?" Karone asked, "What are you doing in Zenith?" 

"Long story, and one that I'll have to explain later," Zhane said, "You guys should be able to take out this goof. I have to go help Leo with Barbarax." With that, he turned Zenith and headed away. 

"Let's do this thing," Mike murmured. 

With that, the three Megazords surrounded Rocketron. The Centauris and Stratoforce Megazords struck first, pulling out their respective weapons and hitting Rocketron with them. The shots staggered the monster, but did little visible damage. The Galaxy Megazord was next, firing a missile from the Condor Galactazord. 

Again, Rocketron was staggered, but quickly regained its equilibrium. "Is that all you've got, Rangers?" the monster sneered. 

"Not even close, loser," Mike said, "Galaxy saber, power up!!!" The namesake sword appeared in the Megazords's hand, and glowed with energy. They slashed Rocketron. The monster groaned before falling to the ground and exploding. 

But instead of actually being destroyed, Rocketron instead shrunk. When it was back to normal size, it jumped up. "I can't believe it," the monster muttered, "I'm still alive. I'm still alive!!!" 

"Not for too long," a voice said. Suddenly, a fist punched right through Rocketron's chest and started absorbing it's life-energy. It turned it's head, to see the monstrous Deviot was his assailant. It tried to speak, but couldn't before it was dead. 

Deviot retracted his fist. Rocketron fell to the ground and exploded, this time being destroyed. The villain's monstrous features slowly faded in and out, until he was finally back to normal. "Ah, it's good to be me again," he said, "And now, to find out who sent that monster." With that, he teleported away. 

Chapter 3

"Reflections."

Leo and Kendrix walked through the park until they came upon their favorite bench. "So, has Commander Stanton been keeping you busy looking through the Galaxy Book to find us a way home?" the Magna Defender asked his wife. 

"Yeah, and I've been over every inch of it, but I still can't find out how to get us back to normal space," Kendrix honestly replied, "I'm glad to get a break, to tell you the truth, so let's not talk about it, all right?" Leo nodded. "Were you and the others able to repair the damage Grunchor did?" 

"Yeah, most of it," Leo answered. Grunchor had been a monster that Captain Zahab had snuck down in the confusion of his first two-pronged attack. It had torn up the underground, and then some of the city, before him and the Galaxy Rangers had stopped it. 

"Good," Kendrix said, "Trekeena and Scorpius, and now Zahab, have caused enough destruction as it is." She noticed the second she mentioned Scorpius, Leo got a dark look on his face and got quiet all of a sudden. "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing," Leo insisted. She scowled at him in a "I don't believe you" manner. "It's just that... well, I've been thinking of taking a hiatus from the team again." Kendrix nodded, remembering the first time he had wanted to not just take a break, but quit all together. 

It had been back when Scorpius had come down to Terra Venture, thinking that the team had kidnapped Trekeena. He had almost torn them apart, and destroyed Terra Venture, until Leo had gotten a lucky shot in with his shotgun mode. He had then hit the villain point blank, at full power, and had destroyed him. 

Kendrix didn't find out until a few days later, but killing Scorpius, even in self defense, began tearing Leo up inside. It didn't help matters much when Trekeena came snatched the Magna Defender, hoping to get at least some measure of revenge. 

The Galaxy Rangers had rushed to Leo's aid, and nearly got their collective heads handed to them by Trekeena, who had gone through vicious training and was more than a match for the entire team all by herself. 

Only an untimely intervention by traitorous monsters had kept the villainess from destroying them. The Galaxy Rangers reluctantly helped Trekeena defeat the monsters. In return, she walked away without anymore fighting. 

When the team returned to Terra Venture, Leo reluctantly told Kendrix about wanting to quit the team. She had been barely able to talk him out of it, with the reasoning that the team needed him. He had agreed to a psycho therapist for a while, and it seemed to help him. 

"Why do you want to take a break?" Kendrix asked. 

"Because I don't want to possibly be called away when the baby's born," Leo replied, "Or if Trekeena's still around then, I don't want to miss any of the special moments, like his or her first steps, first words, and stuff like that." 

"The team needs you," Kendrix said, and felt a strange sense of deja vu, as her words echoed the ones said several months back. "With Hyuuga being so restricted to physical form as he is, you're the only one who can really help them, as the Magna Defender." 

"But..." 

"No buts'," Kendrix insisted, "And I have a feeling that we won't have to worry about Trekeena cutting into our time with our baby. Don't ask me how I know, it's just a feeling that I have." 

"And I won't argue about it," Leo said. The two were about to kiss, when his morpher's communicator went off. Sighing, he brought it to his lips. "Leo here." 

"Sorry to cut into your private time with Kendrix, bro," Mike said, "But about... oh, two dozen Swabbies and a monster teleported into the center of town and are wreaking havoc as always." 

"Be right there," Leo promised, cutting the transmission. He gave Kendrix a quick kiss before standing up and looking around to make sure the cost was clear. "Defend the Galaxy!!!" 

Leo went through his usual motions and morphed into the Magna Defender. "Defender cycle!!!" he shouted. With his command, his motorcycle came roaring down the streets of the city and came a stop before him. 

"Be careful," Kendrix called to Leo as he hopped onto the Defender cycle. Nodding, he sped down the street. 

*** 

Leo got to the battle field, just as Zhane and the Galaxy Rangers looked like they were almost going to lose the fight. He came through, ramming into several Swabbies, before stopping and getting off the Defender cycle and sending it back to the Megaship. 

After letting Hyuuga out to sway the odds in their favor even more, Leo pulled his ax out of it's pocket dimension. Using his enhanced agility and power, he bounced around, hacking at several Swabbies before finally stopping. "I just moved at incredible speeds, and I'm not even the least bit winded,' he thought, 'This is awesome.' 

"Don't get too cocky, my young predecessor," Hyuuga murmured telepathically, "Too much overconfidence can be your undoing." To prove his point, he used his sword in shotgun to blast a Swabbie sneaking up on Leo. 

Between the eight of them, the Galaxy Rangers, as well as Leo, Hyuuga, and Zhane, were able to send the Swabbies packing. The monster was the only one left standing when it was all said and done. It looked to be a cross between a fish monster and a cyclops. 

"Let's see if I can end this early," Mike said, "Red armored Power Ranger!!!" With that, he pulled the keys out of their pocket dimension and thrust them together. A mere second later, he was encased in his armor. "Lock on and fire!!!" With that, his laser targeting system locked onto the monster and ripped loose. 

The laser bolts hit the monster. It fell back and exploded instantly. The armor disappeared from around Mike. Seconds later, they all teleported away. 

Chapter 4

"Zahab's last stand."

With a sigh, Kendrix closed the Galaxy book and leaned back into her chair. She took off her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose. 'It's been two weeks since we came to the Lost Galaxy, and I still haven't made any headway in finding us a way out of here and back home.' 

To try and get her minds off the Galaxy book for now, Kendrix thought about the three adventures Leo, Zhane, and the Galaxy Rangers had been through in the past week. 'Almost makes me wish I still had the Pink power again,' she thought, absent mindedly rubbing her stomach. 'Almost, but not quite.' 

First, one of Captain Zahab's minions, a literal witch named Hexuba, had sent flowers to each of the Galaxy Rangers. When one of them sniffed the flowers, they instantly fell asleep. Once asleep, she would send them to a dream realm, where they faced their worst fears. 

Fortunately, even with Deviot's help Captain Zahab didn't know enough about Zhane or Leo to have Hexuba send them flowers. Kendrix helped Alpha use the Megaship's sensors to find the witch, and the two remaining Rangers went and stopped her at the source. 

'The best thing that came out of that adventure was that Damon met Teri,' Kendrix thought, with a smile. She remembered when Teri showed up with flowers, which Damon had promptly thrown into the garbage. Only a quick rescue by the girls saved the budding romance between the two. 

A few days after that, Hexuba struck again. This time, she resurrected every monster destroyed by not only the Galaxy Rangers and Leo, but also Zhane and the other Space Rangers years ago. 

The team had worn themselves out doing so, but they eventually defeated all of the monsters. They had even gone on to stop Hexuba once and for all, when the witch attacked herself after a threat by Captain Zahab. 

Then, not even two days ago, Captain Zahab had sent the Titaniusaur down. The first battle had crippled Zenith and both the Stratoforce and Centauris Megazords and had almost completely destroyed the Galaxy Megazord and the Defender Torozord, not to mention killing Leo, Zhane, and the Galaxy Rangers. 

Only both Alpha's, Kendrix's, and Damon's working through the night to repair the teams zords and Alpha's discovery of the Titanisaur's weakness had kept the second round from being even more disastrous. 

Kendrix slipped her glasses back on. 'I need to get out of here and get some fresh air,' she thought. Getting out of her chair, she headed for the door and out of her private little workroom. 

*** 

Kendrix strode through the main square, hoping to at least see one of her friends. But so far, she didn't have any luck. 'Knowing Maya, she's probably with the horses again,' she thought, 'Damon is either working on something or with Teri. 

'Kai and Mike are probably in the command tower. And Karone and Zhane are probably spending some private time together again. And Leo's probably either keeping busy by Alpha with something on the Megaship or watching the kids from the daycare center in town. 

Kendrix smiled at that last part. Leo had ended up getting an official job at the daycare center, though it was only part time. "I love being with kids," he had told her, several months back, when he first started volunteering at the daycare center. "I feel like I can really be myself around them." 

'Boy, is that the truth,' Kendrix mused, 'He's a real kid at heart. That's why I know he's going to be such a wonderful father to our baby.' At that, she rubbed her stomach again. 

Kendrix and Leo hadn't had much time together since he got the job, and they didn't even know what its sex was, but they had decided on names. If the baby was a girl, her name would be Andrea Raven Corbett. If the baby was a boy, his name would be Timothy Roland Corbett. 

(Note from the author: Surprised that I didn't have the girl's name Michelle, like I usually do? Well, I wanted to thank both Andrea and Tim, again for the latter, for the help they've given me, and I thought this would be the best way possible.) 

Finally, Kendrix spotted Zhane and Karone. "Hey, guys!!!" she called out. She started running towards them, when, all of a sudden, Barbarax and a couple of dozen Swabbies teleported in out of nowhere. 

The people started panicking. "You're all coming with us," Barbarax said. He pointed his ax to the group of people in the square, and a bolt of energy shot out. Kendrix felt a lance of the energy hit her, and suddenly, she felt herself being teleported away. 

*** 

"Oh man, Zahab really has the worst timing," Zhane muttered, "Ready?" Karone nodded. He flipped out his digimorpher, while she turned her wrist to call upon her transmorpher. "Let's rocket!!!" He punched in his morphing code. 

"Go Galactic!!!" Karone shouted, hitting the pink button on her transmorpher.

Within seconds, the two were morphed and ready for battle. They ran down into the square. "You're not going anywhere, Barbarax," Zhane said, pulling out his Super Silverizer. "At least, not with those people you're not." 

Barbarax turned. "Oh, and who's going to stop me, Rangers?" he asked, "Just the two of you? Don't make me laugh." 

"We're not here to make you laugh, Barbarax," Karone said, as she unsheathed her Quasar Saber. "We're here to introduce you to a world of hurt." 

"Any other day, and I would show you the true meaning of pain," Barbarax said, "But the Captain wants these slaves ASAP, and I'm not going to disappoint him. TTFN, losers." With that, him and the Swabbies teleported out of the square as quickly as they had teleported in. 

"We'd better get to the Megaship, and tell the others, if they don't already know," Zhane said. 

"Let's go," Karone said. As they teleported away, she thought, 'Leo really isn't going to like this. Hope he doesn't end up doing anything stupid." 

*** 

When Zhane and Karone broke the news to the others, Leo almost started hyperventilating. "Take shallow breaths, bro," Mike murmured to his younger brother, as he helped him into a chair. 

Leo huddled forward on the chair and started crying. "How could this happen?" he sobbed, "I thought we could detect that son of a bitch Zahab's men the second they teleported onto Terra Venture. How could they slip through the cracks like that?" 

"They just came and took Kendrix and the other citizens too quickly for us to react, Leo," Karone said, as her and the others crowded around. "Heck, Zhane and I barely had time to morph before they could teleport away. I'm sorry." 

Leo shook his head. "No, it's not your fault," he murmured, "It's mine. I should have been with her. Maybe I could have made a difference." 

"You can't be with her 24 hours a day, man," Damon said, "And, from what Zhane and Karone told us, you wouldn't have gotten the chance to morph. You'd be their prisoner, too." 

"Don't worry, Leo," Maya said, putting a hand on Leo's shoulder. "We'll get Kendrix back, somehow. We've been meaning to find out where Zahab is keeping his slaves anyway, so that we can free them, right? Well, we'll just step the rescue mission up to top priority." 

Leo nodded. "Thanks," he said, "I've got an idea about how to find out where the slave camp is. I'll get myself kidnapped." 

"What?" Kai said, "I know you're upset about Kendrix and the baby being kidnapped, but..." 

"No buts, Kai," Leo said, "I have to do this. Neither Captain Zahab or any of his crew have seen me out of my Magna Defender armor, and I can probably keep Deviot from noticing me. I have to be the one who goes, and I'll do it, with or without the permission of you guys." 

The group was silent for a moment. "Well, if you're going, you can't go alone," Zhane finally said, "The same logic you're using goes for me, too. I don't think Barbarax saw my face before Karone and I morpher earlier, and I know none of them have seen me unmorphed before." 

"That's a good idea," Mike agreed, "The two of you should be able to do this better than if you go alone, Leo. Is that all right with you?" 

Leo reluctantly nodded. "Let's go," he said to Zhane, "If Barbarax is true to the schedule we think he's keeping, he'll be coming back for more slaves in only about ten minutes. No time to waste." 

Zhane nodded. Barbarax had been making hit and run attacks the past couple of days, taking people with him, but it had been small groups until now. Leo stood up. "Wait a minute," Mike said, before they could teleport away. 

"We don't have time to discuss it anymore, Mike," Leo cut in, "We'll keep in constant contact, and you can also keep a lock on our morphers, to find out where they take us. When the time's right, come and rescue us, Kendrix, and as many of Zahab's slaves we can take with us." 

"I'm not wanting to try and talk you out of it," Mike said, "I was just going to tell you both to be careful." 

"We will," Leo replied, with a grim smile. He gave Mike his personal belongings, especially his wedding band, to keep for him, Zhane did the same to Karone and gave her a kiss, and the two teleported away. 

*** 

Kendrix carefully walked through the slaves, refilling their canteens from a big one attached to her hip when they needed it. Since bringing her here a few hours ago, the pirates had treated her surprisingly well because she was pregnant. 'Even space pirates have a little honor, I guess,' she thought. 

Suddenly, Kendrix caught her foot on something and she started to fall. A hand gently grabbed her arm and steadied her. "Whoa there," the owner of the hand said, "Don't want you hurting yourself, or the baby, now do we?" 

Kendrix looked up sharply in surprise, and saw Zhane grinning down at her. He put a finger to his mouth to keep her from calling out her recognition and looked to his link partner, who was digging for jewels and seemed to be oblivious to their conversation. "What are you doing here?" she whispered. 

"We let ourselves get captured," Zhane explained softly, as he turned back to mining for jewels. 

Kendrix moved around Zhane discreetly, picking up his bucket and pretending to help him by holding it out. "We?" she asked, a bit hopeful. 

"Yeah, Leo's here," Zhane said, "I've heard that there's a second camp and I haven't seen him since we Barbarax captured us, and I think they sent him there." Kendrix nodded. "He's been worried about you. How are you doing?" 

"I'm doing good," Kendrix replied, "You'd be surprised how well they treat their few pregnant slaves. What's the plan?" 

Zhane paused to put some jewels into the outstretched bucket. "The others have a lock on us and are waiting for our signal," he murmured, "When we give it, they'll come in with the Megaship, and we'll get out of here, taking as many slaves back with us possible. Beyond that, it's anybody's guess." 

Kendrix nodded. She put the bucket down and started moving away. As she turned from Zhane, she thought, 'Please be careful, Leo.' 

*** 

Leo wiped the sweat from his forehead. 'Man oh man, is it hot here,' he thought, 'I don't think I can handle this for much longer.' 

"You have to," Hyuuga mind-spoke, "Remember, we still have to find Zhane and Kendrix, after all." 

'I know, I know,' Leo responded. Suddenly, he heard his link-mate, a pretty young woman who had yet to introduce herself, collapse. He rushed to her and checked her canteen, which was empty. 

"Here you go," Leo said, as he knelt down to her. He unsnapped his canteen from his belt and holding it up to her face so she could get a drink. 

"Don't help me," the young woman snapped. She tried to push the canteen away, but she was too weak to do so. 

"Just drink some of it," Leo insisted, "You look like you could use it. I don't use much myself, so you can drink as much as you'd like, and I can probably wait until the next time the water bearers come around so I can get a refill." 

The young woman reluctantly took his canteen and took a drink. "Thank you," she murmured, when she handed it back to him. "But do not help me again. If Zahab or any of his crew see you doing it, they'll kill us both." 

Leo nodded. "I won't," he said, as they both stood up. "I'm Leo Corbett. What's your name?" 

The young woman hesitated. "Haley," she replied, "We'd better get back to work, or they'll get us." 

"Right," Leo agreed, and the two got back to work. He had just about to fill his bucket, when he heard a commotion. He looked up, to see that it was Barbarax, shouting at an old man. 

"You'd better dig up more jewels, old man," Barbarax warned, "Or you'll find your life prematurely ended." 

"I'm getting too old to be doing this," the man said. 

"Nonsense," Barbarax growled, "You will do better, or else." He walked away, and the old man slowly turned and went back to work, painstakingly working faster than he had before. 

Leo looked at the old man, then down at his own bucket. He sighed as he picked it up. "Come on," he murmured to Haley, as he started for the old man. 

"What are you doing?" Haley demanded, "We can't move around unless all of the jewels are mined in our designated area." 

Leo ignored Haley and kept moving towards the old man. When he got there, he bent down and dumped all of the jewels he had collected into the old man's bucket. 'I know I'll catch hell for this, I know,' Leo thought, 'But, maybe, they'll probably go somewhat easy on me.' 

As he moved back to the designated area, Leo glanced up at Haley. Her surprise was obvious. "I couldn't just let them hurt or kill him," he told her, "I don't care if any of Zahab's goons saw me give him those jewels." 

"But even if they didn't see you, they'll still be after you for not having any jewels," Haley pointed out. 

"We still have some time," Leo replied, "Not enough to even fill half of my bucket, but, hopefully, it will be enough." 

Haley nodded. "If we're careful, I'll help you," she offered. Leo looked at her a bit strangely, then nodded. The two headed straight for their designated area and went back to work. 

When the end of the day came about an hour later, Leo didn't quite have a full bucket, and Barbarax descended upon him. "Do you think I'm going to cut you slack because, slave?" the villain demanded, "Well, think again." He lifted his ax above his head. 

Haley stepped between Barbarax and Leo. "Please master, don't," she murmured, "He's just new. He doesn't quite know the way it is around here. Please spare my link-mate." 

Barbarax glared at Haley, and then at Leo, before nodding. "Very well," he said, "But if he doesn't bring in a full bucket tomorrow, you'll have to find yourself yet another new link mate." 

Haley nodded. "Understood, master," she said. 

When Barbarax turned and walked away, Leo followed Haley back to the pens for lights out. The Swabbies took off their chain links, as they did every night, or so he had heard. "Why did you help me?" he asked softly. 

"Because you helped my grandfather," Haley replied. 

Leo wasn't too surprised. He had noticed the resemblance between Haley and the old man he had helped. 'I've got to get outside and contact the others,' he thought, 'If I don't, this thing won't go down, and we're in big trouble.' He started back to the door of the pens. 

"What are you doing?" Haley hissed, as she reluctantly followed. 

"I have some friends that are going to come and save us when I give them the signal," Leo said, "I have to get outside to get it to them." 

For the second time in less than an hour, Haley's jaw dropped. "What?" she asked, a bit too loudly for Leo's tastes. 

"Sh," Leo murmured, "I'll explain everything a little later. Right now, I need to get them in here so that we can jump them. Can you think of anything?" 

"You've got it," Haley said. She walked past Leo and started for the door. A few feet away, she fell to a knee and started moaning. Leo moved to stand right beside the door. "Oh, it hurts. Guards, please help me!!! Help me!!!" 

The door and two Swabbie guards rushed in. Leo stepped back and lunged forward, catching them both with a spear. Jumping back to his feet, he grabbed the keys from one of the guards, then helped Haley up. "Let's go," he said. 

Haley nodded and the two rushed out of the pens. "Now what?" she asked. 

"Watch," Leo said. He brought his communicator up to his lips and tuned in the Megaship's frequency. "Mike this is Leo," he said, "Come in." 

"I hear you, bro," Mike said after a second, "Ready for retrieval?"

"Not just yet, because I have to find Zhane and Kendrix and free the slaves at their camp," Leo answered, "But thirty minutes should do it. Come down on this location and pick up the slaves freed here. When you're done, scan for my life sign and come pick up the rest of us at the other slave camp." 

"Got it," Mike said. Leo ended the transmission. 

"Who was that?" Haley asked, "And who are Zhane and Kendrix?" 

"That was my brother Mike, who one of the people who will be coming to rescue us," Leo explained, "Zhane is a friend of mine, and Kendrix... well, she's my wife." 

Haley blinked in surprise and her jaw dropped again. 'He's married, as young as he is?' she thought. She shook the shock off. "Well, I'll help you rescue them," she offered. 

Leo shook his head. "I couldn't ask you to do that," he said. 

"You didn't ask, I offered," Haley pointed out, "Besides, you'll need someone to distract the guards while you get your friend and... wife, out of the pens, as well as someone to get the others out while you're doing so. And lastly, you have no idea where the other camp is, while I do. So I have to go." 

Leo nodded reluctantly. Him and Haley rushed around, freeing prisoners from the other pens. When they got to her grandfather, she gave him a big hug. When they had freed everybody, they gave them strict instructions not to leave the camp unless absolutely necessary, and left. 

*** 

Kendrix stirred at a noise outside the slave pen she was kept in. Suddenly, the door to the pen swung open. She sat up and reached for her glasses. A gentle hand closed over hers. "Here, let me help you," a soft voice interjected. 

Kendrix froze. She quickly found her glasses and slipped them on, and almost had a heart attack when she saw Leo crouching down, looking at her. "Leo!!!" she cried softly, throwing her arms around his neck. 

"Sh," Leo murmured, giving Kendrix a gently squeeze before pulling away. "You ready to blow this popsicle stand?" 

"I've been ready since they first brought me here," Kendrix replied, grinning. The two woke the other prisoners and hurried out of the pen.

"So, have they been treating you badly?" Leo asked, as they stepped out into the moonlit slave camp. 

"Actually, they've been treating me surprisingly well, so it's just the opposite," Kendrix answered. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks. "Opposite... backwards... that's it!!!" 

"What's it?" Leo inquired. 

"I've been looking at this the wrong way," Kendrix said, seeming to ignore Leo. "I thought that the spell to go back would be different than to come here. I can't believe I was so stupid to think that." 

"Think what?" Leo demanded. 

Kendrix looked up at Leo. "I know how to get us back to regular space," she said, "We simply read the spell Deviot recited to get us here backwards." 

Leo did a double take. Before he could say anything, however, Haley and Zhane came running up. "I freed the other prisoners and found your friend," the former said. 

"Thanks, Haley," Leo said. 

"Did you get a hold of the others?" Zhane asked. 

"Yeah, they're on their way," Leo replied, "They've probably picked up the slaves from the other camp and are on their way, so all we have to do is sit tight and keep an eye out for any of Zahab's goons." The others nodded and they headed back to the group of freed slaves. 

About thirty minutes later, right on time, the Astro Megaship touched down in the middle of the slave camp. Unfortunately, Captain Zahab, Barbarax, and a small army of Swabbies teleported in before the slaves could get aboard. 

"And just where do ye think ye're going with me slaves?" Zahab demanded. 

"They're not your slaves any more, Zahab," Leo announced. He turned to Kendrix, Zhane, and Haley. "Get everybody on board. I'll handle these losers and meet you back at Terra Venture." 

Zhane started to argue, but Leo cut the Silver Ranger off with a glare. "Go," was all he needed to say and the Silver Ranger bit off his argument. Nodding, he headed off the gather up the remaining slaves with Haley. 

Kendrix, however, shook her head. "Leo," she murmured. 

Leo silenced Kendrix with a kiss. "Just go," he whispered when he pulled away, "And remember that I will always love you, and our unborn child. Always." 

With tears in her eyes, Kendrix nodded. "I love you too," she whispered. 'He sounds like he's not expecting to come back,' she realized, 'Please God, watch over him.' With a heavy heart, she turned away and started heading towards Zhane and Haley. 

"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Barbarax taunted. 

Leo turned back to Zahab and his crew. "It's time to pay the piper, once and for all, Zahab," he said, "Defend the Galaxy!!!" He hurried through his usual hand motions, and was morphed a second later. 

Leo pulled the ax from it's pocket dimension. Hyuuga made his appearance, and pulled out his sword. The two went into defensive stances. 'From what you said to Kendrix a moment ago, you sound like you don't expect to survive this,' the elder Magna Defender mind-spoke. 

"I'm not sure if we will survive, but I have a feeling that something is going to change," Leo replied telepathically, "I can't get a good enough sense on whether not it's for the best yet." 

"What are ye waiting around for?" Zahab asked, "Attack!!!" At his command, Barbarax and the Swabbies attacked the two Magna Defenders. 

Leo and Hyuuga put up a good fight, but the numbers eventually overwhelmed them, and they were both struck down. As they fell down painfully, the elder reintegrated into his successor and the latter demorphed. 

"Ye're a useless enemy by yerself," Captain Zahab said, as he stood over Leo. 

"I'm not through yet, Zahab," Leo muttered haltingly, as he unsuccessfully tried to get back to his feet. 

"Maybe not, but me slaves are getting away, and I can't allow that," Zahab said, "Ye've done a nice job in keeping us occupied, if just somewhat, I'll give ye that, laddie, but don't cross me. Ye won't like the consequences." 

"Goodbye, Magna Defender," Barbarax sneered, "I hope you rot here." With that, him, Zahab, and the Swabbies all teleported away. 

"I have morph and get to Terra Venture before Zahab," Leo muttered, as he painfully got back to his feet. "Defend the Galaxy!!!" Shutting out the pain, he went through the usual motions, and transformed. 'I just hope I'm not too late,' he thought. 

*** 

Kendrix rushed to the Megaship's bridge as fast as she could. When she got there, she found Mike and the others waiting for her. "We've got to get back to Terra Venture right away," she said. 

"But Leo..." Kai began. 

"Leo said he'd meet us there when he took care of Zahab and his brood," Zhane cut in, as he slipped in behind Kendrix. 

"And I think I've found a way to send us back to normal space," Kendrix said. Mike's eyes lit up a bit at that, but dimmed immediately. She knew that Leo was on his mind, as he was on hers. "He's buying us time. We can't waste it." 

Mike nodded, albeit reluctantly. 'Hope you know what you're doing, bro," he thought. He turned to Alpha. "Set course back to Terra Venture," he said. 

"As you wish, Mike," Alpha said, "Oh, ay yi yi." He went to the helm and set in the return coordinates. 

It didn't take them long to get back to Terra Venture. When they touched down, they rushed to the command tower and the room where the Galaxy book was held. Mike got them past the guards, and they hurried inside. 

Kendrix rushed right over to the Galaxy book. She gingerly picked it up and opened it. She flipped through it until she found the Keonta spell. She looked back up at the others. "Well, here goes nothing," she murmured, and started reading. 

"Tsol siexalag emoceb, dnuof siexalag sa," Kendrix recited, "Dessot si emit, snde ytilaer. Owt ni pir neht tsiwt lliw ecaps. Eurt emoc noos lliw seramthgin dnasouht A." She drew a breath. "Avokah... itenalem... avorak, atnoek!!!" When she finished, the whole place started shaking. 

(A/N: Ack!!! Never realized how hard writing that many words backwards would be. I have a bit more respect for Saban's writers. Not that I had much too begin with, but it's something. Heh heh). 

*** 

"What's going on?" Commander Stanton demanded, as the room started to shake. 

"A vortex like the one that brought us here is opening," a woman said. 

'The Galaxy Rangers must have somehow found us a way back home,' Commander Stanton realized. "Helm, head straight for that portal," he said, "I'm betting that it's our only way home." 

"Yes, sir," the helmsman said. He quickly typed in the commands. There was a shift in view, as Terra Venture headed for the vortex. 

But even as they headed for the vortex, Commander Stanton's hopes for escape faded, as the vortex started shrinking. "Pour on all available speed," he said. 

"Aye sir," came the reply. 

*** 

"Look, Captain Zahab," Barbarax said, pointing to the vortex on the screen. 

"Ar, after untold millennia in this Lost Galaxy, we seem to finally have a way out," Captain Zahab said, "Helm, head for that portal, all speed possible." 

"Ar!!!" a Swabbie exclaimed, as it set in the vortex's coordinates. 

*** 

Leo flew through space and got to Terra Venture just after Zahab and his crew did. When he saw that the vortex was shrinking, his heart froze. 'I have to keep it opened for them, and hope I can get through it myself before it's too late,' he decided. 

"Before you do, Leo, there's one other matter," Hyuuga said, "Captain Zahab and his brood are trying to get through the portal, as well. You must stop them." 

"I will," Leo promised. He powered up his ax and headed for Zahab's floating castle, ready to end the struggle against the pirate. 

*** 

"Captain Zahab, we have incoming," Barbarax said. 

"Bring it onscreen," Captain Zahab commanded. Barbarax nodded. A second later, the Defender Torozord filled the view screen, just as it started bringing down the energized ax. 

*** 

'And now, to make my exit,' Deviot thought, as he saw the ax coming towards the screen. He teleported away. He appeared on Terra Venture. 'Have to make myself scarce until we get back to real space.' With that, he teleported away again, this time to find a hiding spot. 

*** 

Leo almost expected some grim satisfaction as he destroyed Captain Zahab's castle, along with everything in it, but he didn't. He was too busy immediately flying towards the vortex immediately afterwards that he couldn't revel in the villain's demise. 

Leo flew past Terra Venture. 'Even if I must sacrifice myself today, it will not be in vain, as long as they get out of this damned place,' he thought. 

"Such an unselfish sacrifice is never in vain," Hyuuga mind spoke, "If we die today, we will always be remembered, no matter what." 

Leo flew to the vortex and to the bare rim of the rip in space and time. He spread the Defender Torozord's arms wide, in an effort to keep the vortex open. 'I hope to God this works,' he thought, as he sent a message to Terra Venture. 

*** 

The bridge crew cheered as the Defender Torozord destroyed Captain Zahab's castle with its ax. "Now's not the time for real celebration," Commander Stanton said, "We have to get through that vortex. When we get back to real space, then we really have cause to celebrate." 

"Sir, the Defender Torozord is moving past us and towards the vortex," a woman to the left said. 

"What's he doing?" Kendrix asked, as she and the others entered the bridge. 

Commander Stanton turned. "Mr. Chen, Mr. Corbett, please take your stations," he called to Kai and Mike. They both nodded and did as he commanded. 

Kendrix gazed at the view screen, which had shifted back to the vortex, just in time to see Leo take position just inside the vortex. "He's holding it open," she announced. 

Commander Stanton glanced at Kendrix, then the screen. "He can't hold it open for long," he said, "Helm, pour on the speed." Nodding, the helmsman typed in the command. 

A few minutes later, Terra Venture entered the vortex. There wasn't as much shaking as there had been the first time, but it was still enough to make people lose their balance. After several minutes, it came out the other side, into normal space. 

"I can't believe it, sir," the helmsman said, "I think we're back to real space. All of our instruments are back to normal." 

"What about the Magna Defender?" Kendrix asked. She got her answer a second later, as the vortex exploded with light. Her eyes grew wide. "No!!! Le..." Suddenly, she felt an odd kind of pain, almost pinching. 'Oh no,' she thought, as she doubled over. 'The baby is coming.' 

"Mike," Commander Stanton called out, as he rushed to Kendrix's side. 

"Kendrix, what's wrong?" Mike asked, as he joined Commander Stanton. 

"I think I'm going into labor," Kendrix answered. 

"We need to get you to the doctor then," Commander Stanton decided. 

Suddenly, an odd feeling came over Kendrix. 'Leo's not dead,' she realized. "Wait," she said. She looked at Mike. "He's not dead, I can feel it. You guys have to go look for him." 

"But... he wouldn't want me to leave you, not now," Mike said. 

"Just please, go," Kendrix pleaded. 

Mike looked into Kendrix's eyes for a moment, then nodded. "Commander Stanton, I know this is a lot to ask, but can you get her to a doctor?" he asked. 

"Of course I can, but where are you going?" Commander Stanton asked. 

"We have to take care of something," was Mike's reply. He waved to Zhane and the other Galaxy Rangers, and they left. 

"Come on, Kendrix," Commander Stanton said, as he helped Kendrix straighten, then head for the door. 

To be concluded...

Note from the author: I'm not going to ruin any of the finale for you, but I am leaving the decision of Leo and Kendrix's baby, about whether it's a boy or girl in the hands of you, the readers. To vote, either write me, put it in a review (for those reading this on FF.net), or put it in a post in the guest book (for those reading this at the shrine). Anyway, until next time, catch ya on the flipside.

Voting update: As of 12:19 AM Sunday morning, the vote is now 3-0 in favor of Andrea Raven Corbett being born. Also, a third choice (twins, with one boy and one girl) is now added (thanks to JHuynh3132@aol.com). By the way, if you do vote for twins, please add a secondary choice of which sex you would prefer if the voting goes against Leo and Kendrix having twins.


End file.
